360 degree trailer camera view system

ABSTRACT

Systems and methods for receiving a video feed from a trailer control module disposed in a vehicle trailer are described. One method includes aggregating a trailer front view, a trailer rear view, a trailer left view, and a trailer right view into an aggregated birds-eye view at a first control module disposed on the trailer, and sending the aggregated view to a vehicle towing the trailer via a single auxiliary video channel integrated into a trailer hitch wiring harness. The method further includes receiving the feed of the birds-eye view at the second control module disposed in the vehicle via the single auxiliary camera input channel, and displaying the trailer birds-eye view video feed at an output display disposed in a cabin of the towing vehicle. The birds-eye view may be output on a split screen in conjunction with a rear-view of the trailer, obtained from a vehicle camera system.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to, the benefit of, and is acontinuation application of U.S. application Ser. No. 16/741,170, filedon Jan. 13, 2020, entitled “360 DEGREE TRAILER CAMERA VIEW SYSTEM,”which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entiretyincluding all references and appendices cited therein for all purposes.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to a vehicle interface system for avehicle, and more particularly, to an assisted trailer maneuveringsystem for improved visibility while maneuvering a trailer.

BACKGROUND

Operating a vehicle with a trailer in tow can be challenging for manydrivers. This is particularly true for drivers that are unskilled atbacking up vehicles with attached trailers, which may include those thatdrive with a trailer on an infrequent basis (e.g., have rented atrailer, use a personal trailer on an infrequent basis, etc.). Trailerbackup assist systems for vehicles may include an onboard user interfacethat allows the user to steer a trailer towed by the vehicle through anautomated steering controller that provides the steering motion thatmoves the trailer along a user-defined path curvature.

Some vehicles include a 360-degree camera system having processingcapability to combine multiple camera angles into an aggregatedbirds-eye view of the vehicle. Although not currently offered fortrailer backup assist systems, a birds-eye view of the trailer mayfurther assist the vehicle driver to perform trailer backup operations.

Conventional backup assistance systems, which do not provide simplifiedways to transmit video signals from cameras onboard the trailer to thevehicle towing the trailer may be impractical, as the required videochannel connectors may be costly and wear out quickly, in addition tothe time and effort needed to make multiple connections for the videofeeds each time the trailer is hitched and unhitched to the vehicle.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The detailed description is set forth with reference to the accompanyingdrawings. The use of the same reference numerals may indicate similar oridentical items. Various embodiments may utilize elements and/orcomponents other than those illustrated in the drawings, and someelements and/or components may not be present in various embodiments.Elements and/or components in the figures are not necessarily drawn toscale. Throughout this disclosure, depending on the context, singularand plural terminology may be used interchangeably.

FIG. 1 depicts an example trailer backup assist system according toembodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 depicts an example computing environment in which techniques andstructures for providing the systems and methods disclosed herein may beimplemented.

FIG. 3 is an example camera output display user interface in a vehicleaccording to embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 depicts another view of the example output display of FIG. 3according to embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 5 depicts a flow diagram in accordance with the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Overview

Systems and methods for receiving a video feed from a trailer controlmodule disposed in a vehicle trailer are described. For example a firstcontrol module disposed onboard the trailer may aggregate a trailerfront view, a trailer rear view, a trailer left view, and a trailerright view, into a birds-eye view. The trailer broadcasts the aggregatedbirds-eye view of the trailer to a vehicle towing the trailer via asingle auxiliary video input channel that is integrated into a trailerhitch wiring harness of the trailer being towed. The trailer wiringharness connects the trailer with the vehicle to extend control ofstandard driving functions such as trailer braking and signal lights,and includes the video input channel.

The birds-eye view of the trailer may be received via a second controlmodule in the vehicle, and the trailer birds-eye view video feed of thetrailer may be output at an output display disposed in a cabin of thetowing vehicle. The birds-eye view may be displayed in various ways,such as a split screen that depicts the trailer birds-eye view inconjunction with a rear-view of the vehicle, or with other viewsobtained from a vehicle camera system.

Embodiments described herein can provide a way to integrate a trailerbirds-eye view video feed with a rear view of the towing vehicle,utilizing the towing vehicle's existing onboard wiring hardware andcontrol modules, without the need to add additional wiring connections.The disclosed methods and system may be useful in a trailer reversesystem that can assist drivers in operating a vehicle towing a trailer,such as a box trailer or a recreational vehicle (RV) or the like, inreverse gear without a spotter to help the driver, and without addingadditional wiring connections or an upgraded onboard control module tothe towing vehicle.

These and other advantages of the present disclosure are provided ingreater detail herein.

Illustrative Embodiments

The disclosure will be described more fully hereinafter with referenceto the accompanying drawings, in which exemplary embodiments of thedisclosure are shown, and not intended to be limiting.

FIG. 1 depicts an example trailer backup assist system 100, according toembodiments of the present disclosure. The backup assist system 100 maybe utilized for controlling a back-up path of a trailer 104 attached toa vehicle 102 by allowing a driver of the vehicle 102 to specify adesired curvature of the backing path of the trailer 104. The trailerassist system 100 may include a first control module 110, and a secondcontrol module 112. The first control module 110 may be rigidly disposedonboard the trailer 104, and the second control module 112 may bedisposed onboard the vehicle 102. The first and second control modules110 and 112 are depicted in FIG. 1 as controllers running an IntelligentPlatform Management Bus (IPMB) Communications Protocol. Other protocolsare possible, and contemplated.

The backup assist system 100 may further include an output displaydevice 114 disposed in communication with the second control module 112onboard the vehicle. The first control module 110 onboard the trailermay be disposed in communication with the second control module 112 viaan auxiliary camera input channel 116, through a towing wire harness118. The first control module 110 may generate a birds-eye view videofeed 184 through a single auxiliary input channel 148 connected throughthe towing wire harness 118. More particularly, the towing wire harness118 connects a vehicle portion 116A of the single auxiliary camera inputchannel 148 and a trailer portion 116B of the single auxiliary camerainput channel 116. The vehicle portion 116A may connect with the trailerportion 116B (and vice versa) through a towing wire harness 118. Thesingle auxiliary camera input channel 148 is described as “single” inthat it utilizes a single channel connector disposed in the wire harness118.

The trailer assist system 100 may further include a plurality of trailercameras 120 that can include a trailer front camera 140, a trailer rearcamera 142, a trailer left camera 146, and a trailer right camera 144disposed in communication with the first control module 110. The firstcontrol module 110 may receive respective video feeds from the trailercameras 140-146, generate the trailer birds-eye view video feed 184based from the video feeds from respective cameras 140-146, and transmita single video signal via the single auxiliary camera input channel 148.

The trailer assist system 100 may further include one or more 360-degreeview cameras among a plurality of possible vehicle cameras 132-138. Theplurality of trailer cameras 140-146 may be disposed, respectively, on atrailer front portion 156, a trailer rear portion 158, a trailer leftportion 160, and a trailer right portion 162, among other possiblelocations.

Although some embodiments may only include a vehicle rear camera 134, inone embodiment, a plurality of vehicle cameras 132-138 may include afront camera 132 providing a front view of the vehicle 102, a vehiclerear camera 134 may provide a rear view of the vehicle (including, forexample the trailer 104), a left camera 138 may provide a left view ofthe vehicle 102, and a right camera 136 may provide a right view of thevehicle 102. The cameras 132-138 may be disposed in communication withthe second control module 112 of the vehicle via a plurality of cameraconnectors connecting the vehicle cameras 132-138 via the connectionwires 159.

Similarly, the plurality of trailer cameras 140-146 may include atrailer front camera 140 providing a front view of the trailer 104 (andthus, a view of the rear portion of the vehicle 102 from the trailer'sperspective), a rear camera 142 providing a rear view of the trailer104, a trailer right camera 144 providing a right view of the trailer104, and a trailer left camera 146 providing a left view of the trailer104.

The second control module 112, disposed on the vehicle 102, may includea processor 164 and a computer-readable memory 166. Details regardingthe processor 164 and memory 166 are discussed hereafter with respect toan automotive computer 245 in FIG. 2. Further, the automotive computer245 is an example computing platform that can include or represent thesecond control module 112. It should be appreciated that the firstcontrol module 110 may include similar features with respect to thesecond control module 112, and in fact, may be substantially similar oridentical to the second control module 112. The first control module 110may include, for example, a processor 168 and a computer-readable memory170, and may be connected to a power bus (not shown in FIG. 1) availablevia the wire harness 182.

The trailer backup assist system 100 may be configured to automaticallyor manually steer the vehicle 102 to guide the trailer 104 on thedesired curvature or back-up path as a driver uses the accelerator andbrake pedals (not shown in FIG. 1) to control the reversing speed of thevehicle 102. To monitor the position of the trailer 104 behind thevehicle 102, the trailer backup assist system 100 may include a sensorsystem that senses or otherwise determines a hitch angle between thetrailer 104 and the vehicle 102. In one embodiment, the sensor system106 may include a trailer sensor module (not show in FIG. 1) attached tothe trailer 104 that monitors the dynamics of the trailer 104, such as ayaw rate, and communicates with the first control module 110 disposedonboard the trailer. The trailer backup assist system 100, according tosuch an embodiment, may also include a vehicle sensor system thatgenerates information used for navigation such as, for example, avehicle yaw rate and a vehicle speed.

With reference to the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the vehicle 102 is apickup truck equipped with the trailer backup assist system 100 forcontrolling the back-up path of the trailer 104 that is attached to thevehicle 102. Specifically, the vehicle 102 is pivotally attachable tothe trailer 104 via a tongue 172 longitudinally extending forward fromor proximate to the vehicle rear bumper 174. The illustrated trailer 104is depicted in FIG. 1 as being hitched to the vehicle 102 via a trailerhitch 178, which may include a coupler assembly having a hitch ball (notshown in FIG. 1). The coupler assembly may be latchable onto the hitchball to provide a pivoting ball joint connection that allows forarticulation of the hitch angle. It should be appreciated that it ispossible and contemplated that additional embodiments of the trailer 104may alternatively couple with the vehicle 102 to provide a pivotingconnection, such as by connecting with a fifth wheel connector (referredto herein as the wire harness 182). It is also contemplated thatadditional embodiments of the trailer may include more than one axle andmay have various shapes and sizes configured for different loads anditems, such as a boat trailer or a flatbed trailer.

The first control module 110 may receive a set of video feeds that caninclude a trailer front view, which may be received from the trailerfront camera 140, a trailer rear view received from a rear camera 142, atrailer right view received from the trailer right camera 144, and atrailer left view received from the left camera 146. Additional or fewercameras may be used to capture the various views. For example, twocameras may be capable of seeing all sides of the trailer. The firstcontrol module 110 may generate the trailer birds-eye view video feed184 based on the set of video feeds received from the plurality ofcameras 140-146. The first control module 110 may send the trailerbirds-eye view video feed 184 to the second control module 112 disposedonboard the vehicle 102, via an auxiliary camera input channelassociated with the trailer wire harness 182. This image video data maybe sent via the single channel as a video feed to any device listeningfor such a signal via the wire harness. Stated another way, the firstcontrol module 110 may generate the birds-eye view video feed andbroadcast it on the trailer portion of the vehicle portion of theauxiliary input channel 116A. When disposed in communication with thetrailer 104, the second control module 112 may receive the trailerbirds-eye view video feed 184 via the vehicle portion of the auxiliarycamera input channel 116A, and display the feed on an output display(not shown in FIG. 1). The birds-eye view video feed 184 can be receivedand displayed by the vehicle 102 without the need for additional videofeed connections between the vehicle 102 and the trailer 104. Whentriggered on a vehicle infotainment system or other output device, thevehicle 102 may display the birds-eye view video feed 184.

FIG. 2 depicts an example computing environment 200 that can include avehicle 205 comprising the automotive computer 245, and a VehicleControls Unit (VCU) 265 that typically includes a plurality ofelectronic control units (ECUs) 217 disposed in communication with theautomotive computer 245 and backup assist system 100 as shown in FIG. 1.A mobile device 220, which may be associated with a user 240 and thevehicle 205, may connect with the automotive computer 245 using wiredand/or wireless communication protocols and transceivers. The mobiledevice 220 may be communicatively coupled with the vehicle 205 via oneor more network(s) 225, which may communicate via one or more wirelesschannel(s) 230, and/or may connect with the vehicle 205 directly usingnear field communication (NFC) protocols, Bluetooth® protocols, Wi-Fi,Ultra-Wide Band (UWB), and other possible data connection and sharingtechniques. The vehicle 205 may also receive and/or be in communicationwith a Global Positioning System (GPS) 275. In one embodiment, themobile device 220 may be functional as an output display that functionssimilar to the output display depicted in FIGS. 3 and 4, discussedhereafter.

The automotive computer 245 may be or include an electronic vehiclecontroller, having one or more processor(s) 250 and memory 255. Thesecond control module 112 may be one such example. The automotivecomputer 245 may, in some example embodiments, be disposed incommunication with the mobile device 220, and one or more server(s) 270.The server(s) 270 may be part of a cloud-based computing infrastructure,and may be associated with and/or include a Telematics Service DeliveryNetwork (SDN) that provides digital data services to the vehicle 205 andother vehicles (not shown in FIG. 2) that may be part of a vehiclefleet.

Although illustrated as a pickup truck, the vehicle 205 may take theform of another passenger or commercial automobile such as, for example,a car, a crossover vehicle, a sport utility, a van, a minivan, a taxi, abus, etc., and may be configured to include various types of automotivedrive systems. Exemplary drive systems can include various types ofinternal combustion engine (ICE) powertrains having a gasoline, diesel,or natural gas-powered combustion engine with conventional drivecomponents such as, a transmission, a drive shaft, a differential, etc.In another configuration, the vehicle 205 may be configured as anelectric vehicle (EV). More particularly, the vehicle 205 may include abattery EV (BEV) drive system, or be configured as a hybrid EV (HEV)having an independent onboard powerplant, a plug-in HEV (PHEV) thatincludes a HEV powertrain connectable to an external power source,and/or includes a parallel or series hybrid powertrain having acombustion engine powerplant and one or more EV drive systems. HEVs mayfurther include battery and/or supercapacitor banks for power storage,flywheel power storage systems, or other power generation and storageinfrastructure. The vehicle 205 may be further configured as a fuel cellvehicle (FCV) that converts liquid or solid fuel to usable power using afuel cell, (e.g., a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle (HFCV) powertrain, etc.)and/or any combination of these drive systems and components.

Further, the vehicle 205 may be a manually driven vehicle, and/or beconfigured to operate in a fully autonomous (e.g., driverless) mode(e.g., level-5 autonomy) or in one or more partial autonomy modes.Examples of partial autonomy modes are widely understood in the art asautonomy Levels 1 through 5. An autonomous vehicle (AV) having Level-1autonomy may generally include a single automated driver assistancefeature, such as steering or acceleration assistance. Parking assistsystems may be included as one such Level-1 autonomous system. Adaptivecruise control is another example of a Level-1 autonomous system, thatcan include aspects of both acceleration and steering. Level-2 autonomyin vehicles may provide partial automation of steering and accelerationfunctionality, where the automated system(s) are supervised by a humandriver that performs non-automated operations such as braking and othercontrols. Level-3 autonomy in a vehicle can generally provideconditional automation and control of driving features. For example,Level-3 vehicle autonomy typically includes “environmental detection”capabilities, where the vehicle can make informed decisionsindependently from a present driver, such as accelerating past aslow-moving vehicle, while the present driver remains ready to retakecontrol of the vehicle if the system is unable to execute the task. Thebackup assist system 107 may further include Level-3 autonomy features.Level-4 autonomy includes vehicles having high levels of autonomy thatcan operate independently from a human driver, but still include humancontrols for override operation. Level-4 automation may also enable aself-driving mode to intervene responsive to a predefined conditionaltrigger, such as a road hazard or a system failure. Level-5 autonomy isassociated with autonomous vehicle systems that require no human inputfor operation, and generally do not include human operational drivingcontrols.

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the backup assistsystem 107 may be configured to operate with a vehicle having a Level-1through Level-4 autonomous vehicle controller (not shown in FIG. 2).

The mobile device 220 generally includes a memory 223 for storingprogram instructions associated with an application 235 that, whenexecuted by a mobile device processor 221, performs aspects of thedisclosed embodiments. The application (or “app”) 235 may be part of thebackup assist system 107, or may provide information to and/or receiveinformation from the backup assist system 107.

In some aspects, the mobile device 220 may communicate with the vehicle205 through the one or more channel(s) 230, which may be encrypted andestablished between the mobile device 220 and a Telematics Control Unit(TCU) 260. The mobile device 220 may communicate with the TCU 260 usinga wireless transmitter (not shown in FIG. 2) associated with the TCU 260on the vehicle 205. The transmitter may communicate with the mobiledevice 220 using a wireless communication network such as, for example,the one or more network(s) 225. The wireless channel(s) 230 are depictedin FIG. 2 as communicating via the one or more network(s) 225, and viaone or more direct connection(s) 233. The connection(s) 233 may includevarious low-energy protocols including, for example, Bluetooth®, BLE, orother Near Field Communication (NFC) protocols.

The network(s) 225 illustrate an example of an example communicationinfrastructure in which the connected devices discussed in variousembodiments of this disclosure may communicate. The network(s) 225 maybe and/or include the Internet, a private network, public network orother configuration that operates using any one or more knowncommunication protocols such as, for example, transmission controlprotocol/Internet protocol (TCP/IP), Bluetooth®, Wi-Fi based on theInstitute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) standard802.11, Ultra-Wide Band (UWB), and cellular technologies such as TimeDivision Multiple Access (TDMA), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA),High Speed Packet Access (HSPDA), Long-Term Evolution (LTE), GlobalSystem for Mobile Communications (GSM), and Fifth Generation (5G), toname a few examples.

The automotive computer 245 may be installed in an engine compartment ofthe vehicle 205 (or elsewhere in the vehicle 205) and operate as afunctional part of the backup assist system 107, in accordance with thedisclosure. The automotive computer 245 may include one or moreprocessor(s) 250 and a computer-readable memory 255.

The one or more processor(s) 250 may be disposed in communication withone or more memory devices disposed in communication with the respectivecomputing systems (e.g., the memory 255 and/or one or more externaldatabases not shown in FIG. 2). The processor(s) 250 may utilize thememory 255 to store programs in code and/or to store data for performingaspects in accordance with the disclosure. The memory 255 may be anon-transitory computer-readable memory. The memory 255 can include anyone or a combination of volatile memory elements (e.g., dynamic randomaccess memory (DRAM), synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM),etc.) and can include any one or more nonvolatile memory elements (e.g.,erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), flash memory,electronically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM),programmable read-only memory (PROM), etc.

The VCU 265 may share a power bus 278, and may be configured tocoordinate the data between vehicle 205 systems, connected servers(e.g., the server(s) 270), and other vehicles (not shown in FIG. 2)operating as part of a vehicle fleet. The VCU 265 can include orcommunicate with any combination of the ECUs 217, such as, for example,a Body Control Module (BCM) 293, an Engine Control Module (ECM) 285, aTransmission Control Module (TCM) 290, the TCU 260, a Restraint ControlModule (RCM) 287, etc. In some aspects, the VCU 265 may control aspectsof the vehicle 205, and implement one or more instruction sets receivedfrom the application 235 operating on the mobile device 220, from one ormore instruction sets received from the backup assist system 107, and/orfrom instructions received from an AV controller (not shown in FIG. 2).

The TCU 260 can be configured to provide vehicle connectivity towireless computing systems onboard and offboard the vehicle 205, and mayinclude a Navigation (NAV) receiver 288 for receiving and processing aGPS signal from the GPS 275, a Bluetooth® Low-Energy (BLE) Module (BLEM)295, a Wi-Fi transceiver, an Ultra-Wide Band (UWB) transceiver, and/orother wireless transceivers (not shown in FIG. 2) that may beconfigurable for wireless communication between the vehicle 205 andother systems, computers, and modules. The TCU 260 may be disposed incommunication with the ECUs 217 by way of a bus 180. In some aspects,the TCU 260 may retrieve data and send data as a node in a CAN bus.

The BLEM 295 may establish wireless communication using Bluetooth® andBluetooth Low-Energy® communication protocols by broadcasting and/orlistening for broadcasts of small advertising packets, and establishingconnections with responsive devices that are configured according toembodiments described herein. For example, the BLEM 295 may includeGeneric Attribute Profile (GATT) device connectivity for client devicesthat respond to or initiate GATT commands and requests, and connectdirectly with the mobile device 220.

The bus 180 may be configured as a Controller Area Network (CAN) busorganized with a multi-master serial bus standard for connecting two ormore of the ECUs 217 as nodes using a message-based protocol that can beconfigured and/or programmed to allow the ECUs 217 to communicate witheach other. The bus 180 may be or include a high speed CAN (which mayhave bit speeds up to 1 Mb/s on CAN, 5 Mb/s on CAN Flexible Data Rate(CAN FD)), and can include a low-speed or fault tolerant CAN (up to 125Kbps), which may, in some configurations, use a linear busconfiguration. In some aspects, the ECUs 217 may communicate with a hostcomputer (e.g., the automotive computer 245, the backup assist system107, and/or the server(s) 270, etc.), and may also communicate with oneanother without the necessity of a host computer. The bus 180 mayconnect the ECUs 217 with the automotive computer 245 such that theautomotive computer 245 may retrieve information from, send informationto, and otherwise interact with the ECUs 217 to perform steps describedaccording to embodiments of the present disclosure. The bus 180 mayconnect CAN bus nodes (e.g., the ECUs 217) to each other through atwo-wire bus, which may be a twisted pair having a nominalcharacteristic impedance. The bus 180 may also be accomplished usingother communication protocol solutions, such as Media Oriented SystemsTransport (MOST) or Ethernet. In other aspects, the bus 180 may be awireless intra-vehicle bus.

The VCU 265 may control various loads directly via the bus 180communication or implement such control in conjunction with the BCM 293.The ECUs 217 described with respect to the VCU 265 are provided forexemplary purposes only, and are not intended to be limiting orexclusive. Control and/or communication with other control modules notshown in FIG. 2 is possible, and such control is contemplated.

In an example embodiment, the ECUs 217 may control aspects of vehicleoperation and communication using inputs from human drivers, inputs froman autonomous vehicle controller, the backup assist system 107, and/orvia wireless signal inputs received via the wireless channel(s) 233 fromother connected devices such as the mobile device 220, among others. TheECUs 217, when configured as nodes in the bus 180, may each include acentral processing unit (CPU), a CAN controller, and/or a transceiver(not shown in FIG. 2). For example, although the mobile device 220 isdepicted in FIG. 2 as connecting to the vehicle 205 via the BLEM 295, itis possible and contemplated that the wireless connection 233 may alsoor alternatively be established between the mobile device 220 and one ormore of the ECUs 217 via the respective transceiver(s) associated withthe module(s).

The BCM 293 generally includes integration of sensors, vehicleperformance indicators, and variable reactors associated with vehiclesystems, and may include processor-based power distribution circuitrythat can control functions associated with the vehicle body such aslights, windows, security, door locks and access control, and variouscomfort controls. The BCM 293 may also operate as a gateway for bus andnetwork interfaces to interact with remote ECUs (not shown in FIG. 2).

The BCM 293 may coordinate any one or more functions from a wide rangeof vehicle functionality, including energy management systems, alarms,vehicle immobilizers, driver and rider access authorization systems,Phone-as-a-Key (PaaK) systems, driver assistance systems, AV controlsystems, power windows, doors, actuators, and other functionality, etc.The BCM 293 may be configured for vehicle energy management, exteriorlighting control, wiper functionality, power window and doorfunctionality, heating ventilation and air conditioning systems, anddriver integration systems. In other aspects, the BCM 293 may controlauxiliary equipment functionality, and/or be responsible for integrationof such functionality.

The computing system architecture of the automotive computer 245, VCU265, and/or the backup assist system 107 may omit certain computingmodules. It should be readily understood that the computing environmentdepicted in FIG. 2 is one example of a possible implementation accordingto the present disclosure, and thus, it should not to be consideredlimiting or exclusive.

FIG. 3 depicts a rear view 308 of the trailer 104, as shown through anoutput display 304 of a vehicle infotainment system 300. The embodimentdepicted in FIG. 3 can include the example output display 304 in avehicle (e.g., the vehicle 102 as shown in FIG. 1), according toembodiments of the present disclosure. For example, the rear view 308,as depicted in FIG. 3, may be viewable via the vehicle infotainmentsystem 300, or another output device in secure communication with thevehicle trailer 104. The user 140 may select a selectable icon or menuitem (e.g., a selectable menu item 302A “Trailer Birds-Eye View”, aselectable menu item 302B “Rear View Only”, etc.) on the output display300 to switch from a rear view of the vehicle 102, to a split screenshowing both a rear view 308 of the trailer 104 and a birds-eye viewdisplay of the trailer 104. Other selectable icons (not shown in FIG. 3)may be presented for additional views, such as, for example, thebirds-eye view only.

FIG. 4 depicts another view of the example output display according toembodiments of the present disclosure. More particularly, FIG. 4 depictsthe vehicle infotainment system (or other output device) showing a splitscreen output 400. The split screen output 400 may include (among otherpossible views), a birds-eye view of the trailer 104 in a first splitscreen video portion 404 (which may include the trailer by itself in oneembodiment, or the trailer and vehicle birds-eye view in the secondembodiment depicted in FIG. 4), and the trailer rear view output in asecond split screen portion 406.

Other views are also contemplated. For example, in one embodiment, thevehicle 102 (and more particularly, the second control module 112) mayreceive a plurality of video feeds, where the video feeds can includethe rear-view 308, a towing vehicle left view, a towing vehicle rightview, and a towing vehicle front view. Accordingly, the second controlmodule 112 may generate a second birds-eye view of the vehicle 102,which may be another available view selectable via icons (not shown inFIG. 4).

FIG. 5 is a flow diagram of an example method 500 for generating atrailer birds-eye view video feed using a control module onboard atrailer being towed by a towing vehicle using a single auxiliary inputchannel, according to the present disclosure. The following process isexemplary and not confined to the steps described hereafter. Moreover,alternative embodiments may include more or less steps that are shown ordescribed herein, and may include these steps in a different order thanthe order described in the following example embodiments.

Referring first to FIG. 5 at step 505, the method 500 may commence withreceiving, at a first control module disposed on a trailer, a set ofvideo feeds comprising a trailer front view, a trailer rear view, atrailer left view, and a trailer right view.

At step 510, the method can include a step for generating, via the firstcontrol module, a trailer birds-eye view video feed based on the set ofvideo feeds received from a plurality of cameras disposed on thetrailer.

At step 515, the method can include a step for sending, via a singleauxiliary camera input channel, the trailer birds-eye view video feed toa second control module disposed in a towing vehicle mechanicallycoupled to the trailer, wherein the trailer birds-eye view video feed isdisplayable via an output display associated with the towing vehicle.The first control module may send the trailer birds-eye view video feedto the second control module via an auxiliary camera input channelassociated with a trailer wire harness. In one embodiment, the singleauxiliary camera input channel consists of a single channel connectionat the trailer wire harness. At step 520, the second control module mayreceive a rear-view video feed depicting a rear view of the towingvehicle, via the output display, the trailer birds-eye view video feedon a first split screen portion, and display the rear-view video feed ona second split screen portion.

In an example embodiment, this step may further include combining, viathe second control module, a combined birds-eye view video feed showinga birds-eye view of the towing vehicle and the trailer; and displaying,via the output display, the combined birds-eye view video feed via theoutput display.

Embodiments described herein can provide ways to integrate a trailerbirds-eye view video feed with existing wiring hardware and controlmodules onboard a towing vehicle without the need to add additionalwiring connections. The disclosed methods and system may be usefulbecause they provide a better user experience that may wish to view thetrailer at a birds-eye view similar to features in the towing vehicle,and without adding additional wiring connections or an upgraded controlmodule onboard the towing vehicle.

In the above disclosure, reference has been made to the accompanyingdrawings, which form a part hereof, which illustrate specificimplementations in which the present disclosure may be practiced. It isunderstood that other implementations may be utilized, and structuralchanges may be made without departing from the scope of the presentdisclosure. References in the specification to “one embodiment,” “anembodiment,” “an example embodiment,” etc., indicate that the embodimentdescribed may include a particular feature, structure, orcharacteristic, but every embodiment may not necessarily include theparticular feature, structure, or characteristic. Moreover, such phrasesare not necessarily referring to the same embodiment. Further, when afeature, structure, or characteristic is described in connection with anembodiment, one skilled in the art will recognize such feature,structure, or characteristic in connection with other embodimentswhether or not explicitly described.

Further, where appropriate, the functions described herein can beperformed in one or more of hardware, software, firmware, digitalcomponents, or analog components. For example, one or more applicationspecific integrated circuits (ASICs) can be programmed to carry out oneor more of the systems and procedures described herein. Certain termsare used throughout the description and claims refer to particularsystem components. As one skilled in the art will appreciate, componentsmay be referred to by different names. This document does not intend todistinguish between components that differ in name, but not function.

It should also be understood that the word “example” as used herein isintended to be non-exclusionary and non-limiting in nature. Moreparticularly, the word “exemplary” as used herein indicates one amongseveral examples, and it should be understood that no undue emphasis orpreference is being directed to the particular example being described.

A computer-readable medium (also referred to as a processor-readablemedium) includes any non-transitory (e.g., tangible) medium thatparticipates in providing data (e.g., instructions) that may be read bya computer (e.g., by a processor of a computer). Such a medium may takemany forms, including, but not limited to, non-volatile media andvolatile media. Computing devices may include computer-executableinstructions, where the instructions may be executable by one or morecomputing devices such as those listed above and stored on acomputer-readable medium.

With regard to the processes, systems, methods, heuristics, etc.described herein, it should be understood that, although the steps ofsuch processes, etc. have been described as occurring according to acertain ordered sequence, such processes could be practiced with thedescribed steps performed in an order other than the order describedherein. It further should be understood that certain steps could beperformed simultaneously, that other steps could be added, or thatcertain steps described herein could be omitted. In other words, thedescriptions of processes herein are provided for the purpose ofillustrating various embodiments and should in no way be construed so asto limit the claims.

Accordingly, it is to be understood that the above description isintended to be illustrative and not restrictive. Many embodiments andapplications other than the examples provided would be apparent uponreading the above description. The scope should be determined, not withreference to the above description, but should instead be determinedwith reference to the appended claims, along with the full scope ofequivalents to which such claims are entitled. It is anticipated andintended that future developments will occur in the technologiesdiscussed herein, and that the disclosed systems and methods will beincorporated into such future embodiments. In sum, it should beunderstood that the application is capable of modification andvariation.

All terms used in the claims are intended to be given their ordinarymeanings as understood by those knowledgeable in the technologiesdescribed herein unless an explicit indication to the contrary is madeherein. In particular, use of the singular articles such as “a,” “the,”“said,” etc. should be read to recite one or more of the indicatedelements unless a claim recites an explicit limitation to the contrary.Conditional language, such as, among others, “can,” “could,” “might,” or“may,” unless specifically stated otherwise, or otherwise understoodwithin the context as used, is generally intended to convey that certainembodiments could include, while other embodiments may not include,certain features, elements, and/or steps. Thus, such conditionallanguage is not generally intended to imply that features, elements,and/or steps are in any way required for one or more embodiments.

That which is claimed is:
 1. A method comprising: receiving, at a firstcontrol module disposed on a trailer, a set of video feeds from aplurality of cameras disposed on the trailer, the set of video feedscomprising at least two trailer views; generating, via the first controlmodule, a singular trailer view video feed based on the set of videofeeds; and sending, via a single auxiliary camera input channel, thesingular trailer view video feed to a second control module disposed ina towing vehicle mechanically coupled to the trailer, wherein thesingular trailer view video feed is displayable in the vehicle via anoutput display associated with the towing vehicle.
 2. The methodaccording to claim 1, further comprising: receiving, at a second controlmodule disposed in the towing vehicle, a first video feed of the set ofvideo feeds, wherein the first video feed depicts a first trailer viewof the at least two trailer views; displaying, via the output display,the singular trailer view video feed on a first split screen portion;and displaying the first video feed on a second split screen portion. 3.The method according to claim 2, further comprising sending the singulartrailer view video feed to the second control module via an auxiliarycamera input channel associated with a trailer wire harness.
 4. Themethod according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of cameras isdisposed inside the trailer.
 5. The method according to claim 2, whereinthe set of video feeds is the first set of video feeds, furthercomprising: receiving, via a second control module, a second set ofvideo feeds associated with the towing vehicle, wherein the second setof video feeds comprises at least two vehicle views.
 6. The methodaccording to claim 5, further comprising: combining, via the secondcontrol module, a combined view video feed showing a view of the towingvehicle and the trailer; and displaying, via the output display, thecombined view video feed via the output display.
 7. A system,comprising: a first control module disposed in a trailer; and a firstmemory disposed in the first control module, storing executableinstructions that cause the first control module to execute theexecutable instructions to: receive a set of video feeds comprising atleast two trailer views; generate a singular trailer view video feedbased on the set of video feeds received from a plurality of camerasdisposed on the trailer; and send the singular trailer view video feedto a towing vehicle via a single auxiliary camera input channel.
 8. Thesystem according to claim 7, further comprising: a second control moduledisposed in the towing vehicle mechanically coupled to the trailer; andan output display disposed in communication with the second controlmodule, wherein the second control module is further configured toexecute the executable instructions to: receive the singular trailerview video feed via the single auxiliary camera input channel; anddisplay the singular trailer view video feed at the output display. 9.The system according to claim 8, further comprising a towing vehiclevideo feed comprising a view of the towing vehicle, wherein the secondcontrol module is further configured to execute the executableinstructions to: receive, at the output display, the towing vehiclevideo feed; output, via the output display, the singular trailer viewvideo feed on a first split screen portion; and output, via the outputdisplay, the towing vehicle video feed on a second split screen portion.10. The system according to claim 9, wherein the first control module isfurther configured to execute the executable instructions to: send thesingular trailer view video feed to the second control module via anauxiliary camera input channel associated with a trailer wire harness.11. The system according to claim 7, wherein the plurality of cameras isdisposed inside the trailer.
 12. The system according to claim 10,wherein the set of video feeds is the first set of video feeds, andwherein the second control module is further configured to execute theexecutable instructions to: receive a second set of video feedsassociated with the towing vehicle, wherein the second set of videofeeds comprises at least two towing vehicle views.
 13. The systemaccording to claim 12, wherein the second control module is furtherconfigured to execute the executable instructions to: combine, via thesecond control module, a combined view video feed showing a view of thetowing vehicle and the trailer; and output, via the output display, thecombined view video feed via the output display.
 14. The systemaccording to claim 13, wherein the second control module is furtherconfigured to execute the executable instructions to: output, via theoutput display, the combined view video feed on the first split screenportion; and output, via the output display, a trailer view of the atleast two trailer views on the second split screen portion.
 15. A firstnon-transitory computer-readable storage medium in a first controlmodule associated with a trailer, the first non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium having instructions stored thereuponwhich, when executed by a first processor of the first control module:receives, via the first processor, a set of video feeds comprising atleast two trailer views; generates, via the first processor, a singulartrailer view video feed based on the set of video feeds received from aplurality of cameras disposed on the trailer; and transmits the singulartrailer view video feed to the vehicle via a single auxiliary camerainput channel.
 16. The first non-transitory computer-readable storagemedium according to claim 15, further comprising a second non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium in a second control module associatedwith a towing vehicle, the second non-transitory computer-readablestorage medium having instructions stored thereupon which, when executedby a second processor: receives the singular trailer view video feed viathe single auxiliary camera input channel; and displays the singulartrailer view video feed at an output display.
 17. The secondnon-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 16,further comprising causing the second processor to: send the singulartrailer view video feed to the second control module via an auxiliarycamera input channel associated with a trailer wire harness.
 18. Thesecond non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according toclaim 15, wherein the plurality of cameras is disposed inside thetrailer.
 19. The second non-transitory computer-readable storage mediumaccording to claim 17, wherein the set of video feeds is the first setof video feeds, and further comprising causing the second processor to:receive a second set of video feeds associated with the towing vehicle,wherein the second set of video feeds comprises at least two towingvehicle views; generate a combined view video feed showing a view of thetowing vehicle and the trailer; and output, via the output display, thecombined view video feed.
 20. The second non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium according to claim 19, furthercomprising causing the second processor to: output, via the outputdisplay, the combined view video feed on a first split screen portion;and output, via the output display, a towing vehicle view of the atleast two towing vehicle views on a second split screen portion.